Hi all,
I was wondering if I could get some advice.
I'm getting a new kitten after previously owning a cat who was about a year and a half when we got her.

Will find out for definite but think the kitten is about six weeks old.
Obviously she will be kept inside at the beginning until she is fully vaccinated and will use a litter tray to begin with but she will be an outdoor cat so I'm looking for advise about how soon she can go out etc.

I know lots of people think cats should be indoors only but please don't respond with this, I don't agree with this and it's not possible in my situation.

Also wondering at what age can she be spayed and any advice about the best way to move her on from using the litter tray to going outdoors would be really appreciated.

Thanks in advance

6 weeks old is a little young to leave the mum...should be around 8-10 weeks. I know a cuple of weeks doesnt seem long but it really does make a difference to their development.

Personally i dont think the kitten should go out at all until they are spayed, they can have a season and kittens as young as 4 months (one of my cats is the result of a 4 month old female being allowed to wander in the garden) but most vets dont spay until they are about 6 months. Even if you keep an eye on them outside you cant guarantee they wont get caught...and any intact males will go mad trying to get her....and they will come from miles around!

Thanks for the response. I more than likely wrong about her age so because the people I'm getting her from know a lot about kittens and I doubt they'd be letting her go if it was too early. I will double check though but either way I think she has to be taken now as they can't keep her.

That length of time seems to tie in with what I've read. Good to have it confirmed though

Not too long ago 6 weeks was the norm for rehoming but it changed in the last few years, ive hand reared kittens from 2 weeks old so i know how much they change in 2 extra weeks.

good luck with her and you know we'll be expecting photos

Haha thanks a mil

6 weeks is too young. Kittens are not fully socialised.

With all the cats going missing it is best to keep pets indoors at night.

I would get a cat flap as keeping a cat outside is wrong and cruel.

A garden with a rich soil which can be easily dug encourages a kitten to go to the lavatory fine. You will need to show her what to do by digging the soil and your kitten will get the message. However they may need to have this shown to them more than once a day.

My kitten was spayed at 6 months although some now say 5 or even 4.

Apparently it known for a kitten at 6months to get pregnant.

I got both my kittens done at 5 months because I didn't want them to start spraying inside the house, and also because I had a boy and a girl and I didn't want them to start making babies together. The vets were fine doing them at that age.

my vet neuters males at 5 months but wont spay a female until they're 6 months, which really is too late,
in america they spay females as young as 10 weeks if they are over a certain size.
Like i said before one of my cats was the result of a 4 month old cat getting pregnant, she was tiny and the kittens were all quite sick...the owners didnt learn and a month after the first litter was born she was pregnant again...

If its the only cat in the house, just dont let it out.

I got a kitten at 7 weeks (thought he was older) but he's thrived like you wouldn't believe....food, water and love is all thats needed. I would say though to keep him in until he's fully wormed, flead and he's been spayed...they don't wander so much then.

Thanks for all the advice.

I got her earlier today and she is ten weeks old.
She is a bit afraid so trying to make her feel as safe as possible.

She'll be kept indoors until she is 6 months if that's the earliest I can get her spayed and I'll gradually start introducing her outdoors.

I don't agree with the comment that keeping cats outdoors is cruel and wrong. Its their natural environment.
She definitely wont be kept outside full time, just at night time, as I did with my cats before her.

I'd love a catflap ideally but unfortunately its very difficult with the setup of my house and its not my own home anyway so its not my decision to make.

Hopefully she settles soon, its awful seeing an animal afraid.

Wild cats have a cave. Modern cats have a house.

I'm sure she'll settle soon - shes somewhere new and away from her mum so its going to be a big change. My (adult) cat hid for three days at first, though it was like a switch went in her head on day three and she was perfectly fine after

Whilst I'm a big fan of outdoor cats (traffic permitting) I don't agree with leaving the cat out overnight. Urban foxes, traffic and drunken idiots are all far more a problem than back in the day. Mine has a clever cat flap that operates a curfew for her - much to her disgust.

She does have a house.
She'll just be outdoors too.
And will have a bed and blanket in the shed too. As I've said I'm not in a position to have a cat flap which would of course be the ideal.

Bed and blanket in the shed might attract unwanted predators.

I had been taking care of a stray for a while who would meow and walk in circles by my door until I let him out. Animals are capable of expressing their desires. I think you need to make sure your kitten is comfortable at home before letting them out, they need to fear approaching vehicles or else things could end in an unfortunate way.

Op, I don't have a cat flap either (I have a window that's left open most of the time!), if I'm out and the cat is out, he stays out, if he's in, he stays in. A few hours outside is not cruel, won't harm her and is not going to damage her for life. Many peopl have cats that are outside all day and in at night.

I don't see any issue with you letting her out on supervised visits before she is spayed, once she settled she may like a potter round the garden Eric.

I'm picking up 2 kittens next week, they'll be just over 8 weeks old. I'll keep them in completely for a few days until they're settled and have made friends with my 9 year old cat. After than I'll take them out on a lead for a bit each day into the garden. I've also bought a really large puppy pen/ cage which I can put up in the garden and they can play in that for a bit, obviously under supervision. Hopefully that will get them used to the area and as soon as they have their operation they'll be free to come and go through the cat flap during the day, although they'll be in overnight.

I'd be very careful about a lead, some cats are ok with them, but most panic, you remove thier 'flight' option and I've heard many horror stories about kittens damaging thier necks and limbs struggling to get out of a lead. Personally I'd not touch one.

Organised furriers are also stealing cats.

I very much support outdoor access for cats but I must disagree with your plan to keep your cat outdoors at night with no catflap with which to get back inside. I adopted 2 cats from Cats Protection and they advised me to lock my catflap at night - as do all cat welfare groups and vets. Most cat accidents happen at night. I don't actually lock the catflap but all 3 of my cats spend the night sleeping inside even though they could go outdoors if they wanted. Even my late Tabitha, who loved being outdoors and was a skilled hunter, came in to sleep around midnight. Cats are most active outdoors at dusk and dawn. In the summer, one of my cats goes out at around 5am - the other 2 continue their snooze indoors until I get up at about 6am or, if I'm on a day off, around 8am.

I also think that a very young cat may get itself into more scrapes than a more experienced cat. Everything is new and exciting and they will wander further while exploring all this new space.

It's very old-fashioned to put cats outdoors for the night and, in my opinion, potentially quite cruel even though your intentions are good. It's obviously a practice that you are comfortable with and have experience of previously but I would urge you to reconsider. Perhaps have a chat with your vet about your plan and see what they say.

Well the way it was written was ambiguous to its meaning.

A shed will attract foxes. So not a safe place to house a cat if she does not manage to get home in time for curfew.

sadly i know this does happen a friend of mine had her cat killed by a fox in her garden just 3 weeks ago,

personally i think cats should be indoors at night time.

I agree. It reduces the risk of harm to them and harm to birds and mice.

Thanks for all the advice.
I've spoken about it to my parents (I'm early 20s and still living at home) and they said if i want to leave her in at night when she's older then its no problem.

So ill prob do that although I do want her to be outdoors during the day at times.

Anyone without cat flaps that can offer any insight on leaving cats in at night?
The reason I'm a bit worried is that I don't like the idea of having her feeling trapped and whining to go out.